RIP Coolio

Coolio passed away at the age of 59 last night. I was picking my son up from football practice and RD texted me to let me know. I did not believe him at first. I texted him a few times back asking too many questions. While my kid was eating his dinner I did a little internet research, and sure enough, RD was right. I found myself stunned. This is happening far too much lately. Ever since 2020 it seems like people I like, or liked as a kid, are passing away. Biz Markie, Sharon Jones, Phife Dawg, too many to name. And now we have Coolio.

I am a big time hip hop fan. It is my favorite genre of music. I have been listening to hip hop since I was a pre teen. My brothers would have me listen to A Tribe Called Quest, Public Enemy, Kurtis Blow, Erik B and Rakim, a whole slew of legends. When I started to branch out on my own I found a bunch of other rappers I liked. Timbaland and Magoo were big for me. I loved Mase and Puff Daddy. The Notorious BIG is the greatest rapper of all time in my opinion. But when I reached back in the recess of my brain, Coolio was one of the first rappers that really grabbed my full attention. First off he had that wild hair. It was braided, but the braids stayed airborne and he would even fit them through hats when he wore them. But, like most other people, it was the song "Gangsta's Paradise" that really pulled me in. This song was amazing. First off, the beat is a Stevie Wonder song, "Pastime Paradise". My folks listened to a good amount of Stevie Wonder, so I was able to recognize the beat pretty quickly. But it was Coolio's voice that really pulled me in. He was rough, but not DMX, another rapper we lost too soon, rough. He was smooth, but not Biggie smooth. Coolio had his own voice. It was different and unique and cool. I was instantly in. I went out and bought the single. I saw the movie "Dangerous Minds" simply because "Gangsta's Paradise" was the main song in every trailer. I learned every word so as not to mess it up when I would sing it.

I was all in on Coolio after this song's release. I even got mad at Weird Al when Coolio got inexplicably mad at him for doing "Amish Paradise". But they squashed whatever fake beef they had, so it was cool for me to listen to Weird Al again. But it wasn't just "Gangsta's Paradise". Take a song like "Fantastic Voyage". He samples the song with the same name from 1981, but Coolio made it hip. He made it fun. It was a hit. There is the song "1,2,3,4 (Sumpin New)". This song is dope and he has what I perceive to be a Michigan football jersey on in the videos. That makes it so easy for me to be a fan. "C U When U Get There" came out when all rappers were doing ballads, but Coolio did it the best. He had a way about him. He was like a good Biz Markie. And that isn't to say that Biz Markie was bad, he was kind of corny. Coolio could do goofy raps but get away with it because he was wildly talented. I understand that these are his biggest hits, and it sounds cheesy to remark on them, but they were hits for a reason, especially considering my age at the time of their release. He also did the theme song for "Kenan and Kel", which was required viewing for me.

Coolio also acted. He was in "Batman and Robin", which is too perfect. He appeared as himself in "Leprechaun in the Hood". Again, perfect. He did spoof movies. He did "Daredevil", so superhero movies as well. He was in cheesy sci-fi movies. It seems like he knew what he was good at, what would sell tickets, so he went with it. He also did TV. He was in "Martin", "Kenan and Kel", "The Nanny", "Fear Factor", "Futurama" and "Black Jesus". He also had his own cooking show. Again, he knew what he was the best at, so he went for it. Coolio also won a Grammy, American Music Award and three MTV VMA's. The guy had a long and successful career. It is a shame that he has passed away.

This one hurts. Coolio was a big part of my growing love for hip hop. He was one of the first artists that really pulled me in and it stuck. Coolio will be severely missed. Rest In Peace.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Watches "Reboot"

Monday night my wife and I started the show "Reboot" on Hulu. I was listening to "Comedy Bang! Bang!" and Rachel Bloom was the main guest. I did not know she was on the podcast, but I do enjoy her comedy and she mentioned that she was on this show. I had heard about it because I am a Keegan Michael Key fan, but I never really registered watching the show. But after seeing some of Key's press stuff, and then hearing Bloom on "CBB" only further pushed my interest in the show. It also helps that Steve Levitan, who created "Modern Family", created this show as well. So we decided it was time and we tuned in.

We watched the first two episodes and I was hooked. My wife told me yesterday that she was thinking about the show at work all day, so we went ahead and watched the next two episodes that were available. We got caught up on all four eps last night. This show is great. It is funny and insightful and smart and witty and well acted and just fantastic. I was telling my wife on Monday night how well casted this show is too. Keegan Michael Key is perfect for the male lead. He plays his character so well. He thinks he is a better actor than he actually is. I love the scene from the first episode when they show him auditioning for the role of a gangster. It is incredible. Key plays this type of character so well. Judy Greer is equally as wonderful as the female lead. Greer is in seemingly everything, but now she has a chance to shine in a starring role, and she is nailing it. I enjoy every minute she is on screen. Johnny Knoxville is almost too perfectly cast as the former drug addict turned comedian turned actor twice over. Knoxville is my favorite person on the show. He is so funny. He is out of his element in the real world. He is even better on the show. I adore Knoxville in this show. Calum Worthy plays the former kid actor turned adult. He is a total fish out of water. He still acts like a little kid. He still brings his mom, more on her in a minute, to set everyday. He is very fun. Rachel Bloom plays the creator of the show. She is so good. I totally buy everything about her in the show. She just brings it and she is crushing right now. Paul Reiser is the original creator of the show, and Bloom's dad. Reiser is amazing here. He is having something of a career resurgence. Reiser has always been a good actor but it feels like he is bringing it even harder as of late. The rest of the cast is solid as well. Everyone they got to play bit parts is totally nailing it. They are crushing it. The writing is top notch as well. While not on the level of "30 Rock", this show has a ton of jokes in each episode. They also get some drama in there as well. There are some notable heartfelt moments here. I also like the look and feel of the show. It is very reminiscent of early "Modern Family", when that show was at its best.

I definitely recommend this show. It is so good on so many levels. Check it out.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Listens to "The Mars Volta"

Today I decided that I was going to listen to the new Mars Volta record. I had been putting it off for a bit. I really like Mars Volta. I enjoy their music. I have seen them live before and it was a great show. But their older music used to meander a lot. They would put out an album that would be over an hour long but only have eight songs. I liked parts of each song but there would be other parts that felt superfluous. I would find myself skipping to the parts I liked and going over the stuff that felt unnecessary. So I had reservations about the new album. I also decided to not read much about it because I knew I would listen to it one day. And as I said, that day was today. It was this morning in fact, when I was bringing my kids to school.

I am here to say that this new record is my favorite. It is very, very good. The very first thing I noticed was the song length. No song goes over four minutes. The record has fourteen tracks and it clocks in forty-four minutes and some seconds. I feel like the time off really let them hone their craft. The band sounds awesome. Cedric Bixlar-Zavala's voice is as great as it has ever been. He has a very unique, very distinct sound. He may be an acquired taste, but I like the band's music and I especially like Bixlar-Zavala's voice. He sounds great. Omar Rodriguez-Lopez is back and better than ever. He is one of the greatest guitar players that has ever walked the Earth. He is wildly underrated too. No one ever talks about him when they talk about the best current guitar players. He sounds incredible on this new record too. I feel like he does a bunch of extra stuff here too. He is multi-talented. He is like Johnny Greenwood. I started listening to this band because of him. He is awesome. The rest of the band is up to the task. The bass sounds phenomenal. The drums are the perfect prog rock sound. The keys and horns are pretty dope. It all works to perfection. They compliment Bixlar-Zavala and Rodriguez-Lopez masterfully.

Back to the song length. As I stated before, they really tighten it all up on this new album, which is called "The Mars Volta". I turned it on and was waiting to see how long the first song was going to be. When it was less than three minutes I thought, oh, one short song and the rest will be six plus minutes long. But then the next song was a shade over three minutes long. Then another three minute long song. Then a two minute long song. Needless to say, the longest song on the record is four minutes and thirteen seconds long. That is perfect. I like my music to be nice and short. Four minutes long is right at that edge, and The Mars Volta ride the line to perfection here. It is such a great revelation for me as a fan. Now they just do all the great stuff without the unnecessary jamming. It is the way it should be.

If you are a fan, as I am, I definitely suggest checking out this new record. It is tremendous. It is quite an accomplishment.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Good Riddance to the Pro Bowl

I was reading some sports news yesterday and came across the news that the NFL was getting rid of the pro bowl.

I was inexplicably excited upon reading the headline. I have never liked the pro bowl. I am not a fan of all star games in general. They are glorified scrimmages. No one really wants to be there, they have to because they've been voted in. Sure, they may get a nice bonus and a trip to a nice location, but it feels like a waste of time. I watch the NBA all star game every year and I am usually disappointed. I do like the new Elam ending they changed to, and it makes the final quarter exciting. The players actually look like they are trying. They are going hard. But for three plus quarters prior to that, it is not great. I have not watched the MLB all star game in years. I used to like it because every single team has to send a player. But the game is boring, like most baseball games. I do not watch hockey, so I have no idea what the all star game is like. And then we have the pro bowl. The pro bowl might be the worst of them all.

My son has gotten into football the last year plus and was adamant about watching the pro bowl this year. I tried to talk him out of it, laying forth everything I just told all of you. But he was determined. So we watched, and he convinced me to watch with him. And we were both so very disappointed. He kept asking me why they weren't tackling people, why everyone was falling down or going out of bounds, why they were not going after punts and field goal blocks. He was just totally confused. I tried to tell him that none of these guys wanted to get hurt. That they were saving themselves for next season. He also wanted to know why no one from the Rams or Bengals were playing. I had to explain that they were playing in the Super Bowl in the following week, so the pro bowl was not even a thought for them. That only further angered him. It sucked.

Now the NFL has decided to strip the whole game. They are going to do some skills competition and a flag football game. This is the perfect idea. Flag football is fun. It is fast paced, hard to grab flags and very high scoring. I love it. My son played flag football for two years before starting tackle this year and it was awesome. I am also a big time fan of skills competitions. I adore the skills stuff during the NBA all star weekend. It is the best. It has replaced the dunk contest as the most exciting part of the whole weekend. I hope that it will be the same thing for the NFL pro bowl weekend. I am curious to see how many balls a wideout can catch in a minute. I want to see these exceptional athletes do obstacle courses. I want to know how far these NFL QBs can throw the ball. I would love to see defensive players tackle a dummy and have a way to determine how hard they are tackling it. I want to see kickers kick 60 yard field goals. I crave skills competitions. They are way more fun than watching professional athletes go 25 percent and do live interviews on the field during a pointless all star game.

I would love it if every professional sports leagues did away with all star games and just made it a weekend of skills competitions. That would be best. I have a lot of faith in the NFL doing this. Hopefully this starts a trend. Time will tell.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Watches "House of the Dragon"

The other night my wife and I started "House of the Dragon". We watched "Game of Thrones", my dad was talking up this new show and it is a prequel, so we were pretty easily on board. It did not take much convincing for us. But we did put it off for a bit due to life. My son plays football everyday, my daughter plays soccer and my wife works all the time. For those, and so many other reasons, we could not start the show until Monday.

That being said, we have already watched three of the five episodes available on HBO Max. The show is good. There has been some dope dragon action so far. The characters are pretty well written. The actors are doing a great job to this point. I am fully in on the parts of the story that I understand. I like the easter eggs they have placed here and there. It is cool to hear some names from "GOT" taking place in this world almost 200 years before. It is crazy and violent and gory and nuts. I like it a lot.

The show is also very confusing. I do have a hard time following other story plot points. That is my fault too. There is so much going on that it can be hard for me to keep track. I'm also not nuts about all the politicking that is going on. I wasn't a fan of all the meetings in "GOT", and in "HOTD" they do about the same amount. There is a good amount of time spent talking about who is king, who will be the heir to the throne, people going behind other people's backs,just a lot of shadiness. I understand the importance of it all, but it can be a bit much at times. The violence can also go a bit overboard as well. I have seen a ton of heads caved in, half of other people's body's cut up, eyes gouged out and sword cuts. I think as I get older my stomach gets queasy easier. I can't handle some of the stuff I could when I was younger. But all in all this show is very well done.

The story, the one I understand, is interesting. The time jump in episode three didn't affect me as much as I thought it was going to. I read there is another time jump, involving 10 years with new actors taking over, but so what. That is how these shows should work. I have loved all the dragon stuff too. I think that might have been my favorite thing about "GOT", and in this show, that is the story of the main family. I also like seeing some actors I recognize from comedies doing more serious stuff. The main guy, the king, is in most of the Simon Pegg and Nick Frost movies. I've seen him play any number of comedic roles. But seeing him in "HOTD" has been cool. Rhys Ifans, who was in "The Replacements" and a "Spiderman" movie, is the hand to the king. He is his top assistant basically, and he is devious as hell. It is very cool to see him do this kind of role. The girl who plays the young princess is awesome. She is badass and powerful and under control. She is like a less crazy Danerys. I also really enjoy the cast not being filled with white people. It is pretty dope to see a melting pot of characters in this world. I also think it is hilarious that people are mad about this, even though this show is in no way real at all.

I'm excited to see where this show goes from here. I can only imagine it will get more and more crazy, and I like that. I also have to think there is going to be so much more dragon content, and that is what I'm here for. "House of the Dragon" is very good and has potential to be great. Check it out if you haven't yet.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Watches "Atlanta" Season Four Premiere

Last week the fourth and final season of "Atlanta" premiered. I just watched it this past Monday. I am going to take this final season slowly. I want it to marinade in my mind. I want to really take my time. I want to watch each episode two or three times. I have watched the first two episodes twice to date. I need multiple views to understand at least half of it.

"Atlanta" is also the best show on TV right now, full stop. Donald Glover is doing magical things. He is hitting home runs left and right. I've talked at length about how awesome and innovative he is on every platform I can. Glover is the best. As is "Atlanta". The final season two episode premiere only further hammered that home.

The first episode has them back in Atlanta. They were overseas last season, but now they have all returned home. But it isn't like it was before they left. Something is different. Something is off. Darius has a crazy lady chasing him all over the place. He is just trying to return an air fryer, but this lady won't quit. Paper Boi is going on some wild scavenger hunt involving the death of one of his favorite rappers. And Earn and Vanessa are in some kind of weird time loop at an outside shopping mall. This episode was nuts. The whole thing with Earn and Van was crazy. They kept running into exes who were seemingly braindead. I was floored. I didn't get what was going on until the second viewing. The whole thing with Darius started off wild enough when he was returning the air fryer. He is oblivious to the store getting robbed with all the alarms going off. He is so focused on what he is doing. But then we have this crazy lady chasing him in her scooter with a knife. I'm still a little confused by this. And Paper Boi goes on one of the coolest, and most fun looking scavenger hunts I've ever watched. I want to do that. And that had the best payoff. And when the episode ended, all I could think of was how in I was on what they were doing.

The second episode is up there as one of my favorites of all time. This one is primarily focused on Earn and his therapy sessions. There is a minor second story involving some lady who is getting a book deal. All throughout we see Earn going to therapy. He seems to be really getting something out of it. He appears to be growing as a person. It is a nice little insight to him maturing. His therapist is great. His friends make fun of him, but he pays it no mind. There are three sessions we see, and with each one the story gets bigger and bigger. They kept cutting to this lady who is getting a book deal, and her life seems sad, but on the come up. Near the end Earn tells his therapist that he wants to try some of the techniques he has learned on his own. He tells him he is going to take a break. The therapist is totally fine with this. After that we see the lady going to do a reading of her new book. It is a disaster. The kids are bored. They all stand up and leave, except for one, who fell asleep. We then cut to Earn at a bar and we see a video of the lady crashing and burning. It turns out that Earn has paid all of these people to ruin her life because she was racist to him, Van and their daughter at the airport. He is out to destroy her. When Paper Boi and Darius show up he is all hype to tell them what he did. He does and they tell him he is crazy. As they walk off and Earn is by himself, he sits back and says that maybe he should continue with his therapy. It was an incredible moment.

This show is the best absurd comedy on TV. They are doing things that I have never seen before. They are so, so, so good at what they do. I highly recommend everyone watch this show. Go back and start at the beginning and then be amazed at how far they have come. "Atlanta" is a true classic of a show.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

The "Comedy Bang! Bang!" A-Team Cannot Be Beat

I was listening to the most recent episode of "Comedy Bang! Bang!" and I came to a comedy realization. When Scott Aukerman invites Jason Mantzoukas, Andy Daly and Paul F Tompkins on the pod, it is some of the best improv comedy in the game. These four work so well off of one another. All they need is a little bit of a premise and they are off.

On the newest "CBB" it was about as simple as it gets. Mantzoukas was there as himself. He is one of the unofficial guest hosts of the show. Then Andy Daly was Byron Denninson, the royal watcher, and PFT was on as The Grizz. These are some tried and true characters. They have been on a few times, and with each appearance the story gets bigger and better. This time around Mantzoukas and Aukerman were just talking about stuff that was going on in the world and they happened to mention some people dying. This was when Daly came in as Dennison. He told them about Queen Elizabeth and Daly was as funny as ever. He is so good at this character. This is a keeper. I very much enjoy listening whenever Dennison is on. Then PFT came in as The Grizz and totally blew up all of the stuff Dennison was talking to them about. He took off the covers to Dennison's whole story. It was great. I loved every second of it. Then both of them turned into Australian versions of their characters. It was wonderful. While they were doing the Aussie version of their characters was when I realized how awesome all of this was. I was listening to four great improvisers doing their thing at the top of their games. It ruled. Mantzoukas and Aukerman took a backseat, and that was the right thing to do. PFT and Daly were riffing off of one another. One would tell a joke and the other would just go with it. They would do multiple minutes on so many different topics and it all worked. I was cracking up. The stuff with the Grizz and Dennison was great. But the stuff with the Aussie versions was even better. When Daly realized he had to change his accent, that was gold. It was so real and so funny. And PFT didn't make fun of him, he just went with it. It was incredible. At times Mantzoukas would chime in with a joke and it was excellent. Aukerman was there to keep it all moving and he is so good at this task because he is a top notch podcast host.

I was in awe of all the things they were doing. I was sitting in my car cracking up, but also appreciating the greatness I was listening to. I was hearing some of the best people in the game do their thing. I saw that these four were on the episode and I immediately got hyped up. I knew it was going to be great. But when I listened it was even better. It exceeded my very high expectations. I appreciate when professionals all get together and perform so well. It can be magical.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Watches "Brian and Charles"

Over the weekend I watched the movie "Brian and Charles". This was the date night pick in fact. It was my turn, I remembered seeing a trailer for this movie and it was on sale to rent on VOD. That was all I needed to be sold on it. It also helps that the movie is 90 minutes long, it is a comedy and it is small.

For those that may not know, and I imagine there are a lot of you, the plot of this movie is very straight forward. We have a lonely inventor living in Wales who goes out scavenging one day. He finds a mannequin head and decides to build a robot. He succeeds and then some stuff happens. Again, very easy to follow and very straight forward. But in watching this movie I found it to be so much more.

I am a big "Napoleon Dynamite" fan. It is one of my all time favorite movies. It is comfort food for me. I got a lot of the same feelings from "Brian and Charles". Both movies are small. Both movies have tiny casts. Both movies take place in what many would consider to be boring places. Both movies focus on an outcast who makes friends their own way. And both movies have some of the best friendships I have ever seen. "Brian and Charles" is one of the best friendship movies I have ever watched. I read a review afterward that called it the "bromance movie of 2022". I couldn't agree more. That is what this movie is about deep down for me. Brian is lonely. He has no one in his life. He is seemingly on his own. He has no siblings. His parents are not around anymore. He only interacts with a few of the townspeople. He is just by himself. But then he makes Charles. At first you do not think he works, but after the storm something clicked in Brian and he was fully functioning.

The first fifteen minutes of the movie are Brian being interviewed and then building Charles. After Charles comes to life the movie picks up. The scenes between Brian and Charles are magical. We get to see Charles essentially grow up. He has childlike tendencies at first. He reads a dictionary to learn the language, but he still acts like a little kid. He gets upset when Brian leaves. He gets incredibly excited like a puppy when he returns. Charles asks questions constantly. He learns to dance, to sleep, to eat and to interact. As the days pass Charles gets older. When he is a "teenager", he starts to act up. He wants to go out and experience things. When Brian relents things go a bit haywire. Sure Brian gets a crush to go out on walks with him, but he and Charles are constantly at each other's throats. At one point the town bully comes and steals Charles after initially meeting him. Charles is treated awfully there, and Brian and his new girlfriend hatch a plan to save him, Spoiler alert, it works. How it works, I will not spoil that, it is funny and great. I loved that scene. The way the movie ends is perfect for this movie as well.

While watching I never lost the smile on my face. Even when things got a bit more serious they always undercut the drama with a joke or two. The actors all fully committed and it shows. They went for it and they hit a homerun. This is a unique movie even while it is a common movie trope. I loved this movie. I have already recommended it to a few people who share similar opinions on movies. "Brian and Charles" is a true hidden gem. I definitely recommend seeking it out and watching it. It is so worth your time.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Watches "Operation Flagrant Foul"

Yesterday I watched "Operation Flagrant Foul". This is one of the new Untold documentaries on Netflix. I am a big fan of the Untold series on Netflix. They do cool, interesting sports stories that I may not have been aware of, or even heard of before. That being said, I am well aware of the Tim Donaghy fiasco.

For people who may not know, Donaghy was arrested and sentenced to prison for gambling on professional basketball. To make matters worse, he was a professional referee. To make matters even more worse, he bet on games he was personally reffing. It was all bad when you really think about it.

What I enjoyed about this doc was the backstory we got. Donaghy has a very interesting past, one that I was unaware of when this story first popped. He was married, had kids, had good friends, was a highly rated ref, he lived a relatively normal life as a pro ref. He made some questionable calls as a ref, but he did pretty much everything by the book. He even called stuff on Michael Jordan when that was very much frowned upon. There is a great part in the doc when Donaghy recalls calling traveling on MJ. He called it, and after calling it, while walking down the court Phil Jackson approached him. He yelled at Donaghy and Donaghy told him that he got the same memo that everyone got. Jackson said he gets it, but pointed to Jordan and said, "you don't call it on that guy". That was a fascinating look into the NBA at that time. The NBA has always favored stars, and this was when it seemed to be at its highest. From there Donaghy went about his job. Then a few of his childhood friends, who considered themselves professional gamblers, contacted Donaghy about certain NBA games.

From there on out it got nuts. Donaghy would call other refs to see when they were working. He would look at the schedules and check out the crews for each game. He would contact ref friends and try to get info on certain games they were calling. He started out with his childhood friends, but from there it grew. He was making big money. He was able to buy things for his wife and kids that he was never able to do before. He was living life being rich. He was getting a taste of the supposed good life, and he liked it. He gambled on 47 games and won 37 times. That is too close of a coincidence. It is too fishy. I knew he gambled on games but I did not know it went this deep. It was getting bad enough that he started to get scared. He was afraid that he was going to get caught. But he didn’t stop. Then one of his buddy's said the FBI contacted him. The FBI had contacted him a few times actually. This was when Donaghy knew he was in trouble. He decided he had to confess. When he did he got majorly screwed over by some people, maybe some people named David Stern, RIP. The whole Stern situation was revealing. I did not realize how much of a boss he actually was when he was the commissioner of the league. It was as close to the mob as anything I have seen in a movie. I also found it pretty eye opening that the three main guys of this movie seem to still be lying constantly. They cannot stop themselves. They just vomit words out of their mouths until they believe what they are saying. It is crazy.

All in all this was a solid doc. I knew some of the stuff, but some other stuff was news to me. I like when I can learn something new about a story I thought I knew everything about. I recommend this to fans of basketball, especially fans my age. It was pretty cool.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Let's Cheer on Pujols Chase for 700

I have said it many times before and will say it many more times, but I am not the baseball expert here at Seedsing. That is RD's domain. He knows the game better than anyone I know personally. He loves the MLB and I do not. But I live in Saint Louis. It is hard to not notice the Cardinals, especially when they are playing well.

The Cardinals are having a good year. They sit at 84-59 right now. They are eight games ahead of the Brewers with thirteen games left in the year. They are going to be in the playoffs. It is almost assured. The only teams with a better record in the NL are the Dodgers, Mets and Braves. That's it. This also happens to be the last season for Yadier Molina, who I believe is the greatest catcher to ever step on a baseball field. I believe Adam Wainwright is going to retire too. He has been a wonderful pitcher who has won big, big games and multiple World Series rings. And then we brought Albert Pujols back for one last ride. I wasn't thrilled when they signed him, but it seemed like a cool idea. Why not bring a former MVP superstar back. Sure he is in his 40's, but he can still swing that bat. And it was cool to see him teamed up with Waino and Yadi. It is like a blast from the past.

The thing that has made this season so special, why I am kind of paying attention at this current moment, is that Pujols has 697 career home runs, just past Alex Rodriguez and is only three away from 700, a holy grail number in the MLB. Pujols has also kind of been on a tear lately. He is not an everyday player anymore, but it seems like every other game he is hitting a homer. He may get in to pinch hit, and bam, he hits a homer. Or he will get the start at first, and in his second or third at bat he will hit another bomb. When he got to 695 I got involved because he was close to passing A-Rod, who I am not a fan of at all. I cannot stand him. I wanted Albert Pujols to pass him. I feel like he had tied him up immediately. It may have been the very next game after 695. I was pumped. He was tied, and I was certain that he was going to pass A-Rod. It took a few games, but when he did it, I loved every second of it. I soaked it all in. It was great. I was coaching my son's ball team that night, but we were all following the news on our phones. Then Pujols hit 697. Even more distance between him and Rodriguez. Awesome.

Now I am at the point where I almost need him to get to 700. I just do not know how anyone could walk away from the game when they are that close to history. I remember being a kid and being angry that Emmit Smith stayed in the NFL so long just to break the rushing record. Now I get it. He was always going to be a Hall of Famer, but breaking the rush record means he is always going to be mentioned as an all timer. That would rule. Now if athletes maybe stick around too long, I do not blame them. When they are this close to history I want them to go for it. If I were an MLB pitcher I would groove Pujols fastballs. There are thirteen games left, as mentioned above, and I would be playing Pujols as much as he wanted. If he asked to get in the game, you better believe I would put him in. It is not like the Cardinals need to win X amount of games for positioning. They are pretty much set where they are going to be set. And, the way Pujols has been swinging the bat lately, he would only help the team.

I do not watch the MLB anymore. It is too boring. But with Pujols chasing 700, you better believe I will be watching and rooting for Albert Pujols to get 700. That would be amazing, but also fitting if he were to do it with the Cardinals. I'm here rooting for you Albert. Let's get to 700. Good luck.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

A Nice Run Helps Chase the Blues Away

Yesterday was an exhausting and annoying day. I had a good amount of stuff to do. Some of it was fun. Other stuff, not so much.

I started the day by getting coffee with my dad, which was great. I got to see him and my mom. I spent the whole morning over there. That was nice. When I got home I got some stuff done. I went for a run. I had a good lunch. I got the laundry folded and put away. I did accomplish some things. But the rest of the day was just frustrating. I was late to pick up my daughter at school. My son got out of his fancy school later than normal. I ate a snack that I shouldn't have. I had to pick up my son and his buddy early from football practice for a baseball game. The baseball game was where it all boiled over. I lost it. I had to remove myself at one point because I thought I was going to holler at a bunch of 10 year olds. But I didn't. I just went home annoyed and went to bed angry.

I woke up this morning and I still felt kind of off. But then I went for a trail run. Wednesday is my day for a longer run during the week. I went to one of my favorite trails here in the STL, DeClue out in Wildwood. This is a good trail with technical areas, nice hills, lots of flats and it is flat out beautiful. I got there a little after 9am and got started on my run. I was going slow at first, to work out the sleep kinks. As I got about a mile in, my mind wandered to what I was currently doing. All the frustration from yesterday disappeared. I was out in the woods by myself. I only saw three other people and they were all riding bikes. I basically had the trail to myself.

As I got further along in the run, it is just short of eight miles, I found that I had forgotten all about yesterday. I was happy. I was doing something that I love. I was taking it all in. It was glorious. As I was driving home I caught myself thinking about how much better I felt. I let all the nonsense wash away. I realized it wasn't all that important. There is no reason to get so upset at useless things. I have been walking on a cloud since finishing my run.

That was when it all hit me, running is my sanctuary. I feel so much better when I go for a run. I get angry when I haven't gone on a run for awhile, but when I get that run in I'm instantly better. The trail is even better. I can really escape when I am in the woods. Sometimes I bring headphones, and other times I am alone with my thoughts. Both are great. When I have headphones I can listen to music or a podcast. It depends on the mood. Podcasts are good for keeping pace. Music is good if I want to go a bit faster. When I go without headphones I get to listen to nature. I love hearing all the animals. I saw a ton of deer eating and running this morning. I also like to hear the ground below me. I also like being out there in nature. It is the best distraction. I see a therapist, and he is great. But the woods are almost, almost as good. Running can be great to clear my head. I can let it all out and I instantly feel better. That was how it was this morning.

Running is the best. I love the way it makes me feel. It is wonderful for health, both physical and mental. I have been amazed at what I have been able to accomplish since I started running about 8 years ago. I am also amazed at the community that I have become a part of. I also like seeing people I know accomplish new goals. Running is the best. It has changed my life and I wanted to give it a shout out today. It all came to a head this morning and I was stunned at how much it changed my attitude. Running rules. It is the best.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Watches "Better Call Saul" - Final Season

I finished "Better Call Saul" this past Sunday. I had been putting off watching because I did not want it to end. This show has been pretty special. I did not know what to think about a prequel to what is one of the best shows of all time, "Breaking Bad", but they pulled it off. I think taking a character like Saul Goodman, who was a bit more comic relief, was the best way to do it. It was not a rehash of what we all saw with "Breaking Bad". Hell, they didn't bring too many people back from the show. There were cameos here and there, but outside of Mike and Gus, nothing too crazy.

This show worked so well because they told Saul's story from the start of his lawyer career. I liked going back and watching him become Saul. He started as Jimmy McGill, but he ended as Saul. Sure, minor spoiler alert, he wanted to be called Jimmy again at the end, but he was still known as Saul by some criminals.

This last season has been anxiety riddled, non stop action, dramatic and as satisfying as one could have wanted. He became Saul, albeit slowly. He ended relationships. He screwed over people close to him with no regard. He became a criminal. He did devious things. He got involved more with Gus and Mike. There was the minor storyline involving Saul and Walter White being stuck together. We got to see Walter and Jesse Pinkman again. There was a wonderful moment between Jesse and Kim. Kim Wexler, played by Rhea Seehorn, was incredible. She was the best part of this final season, maybe even the whole series. She had a moment in the penultimate episode, when she breaks down, that was acting at its finest. I felt so very bad for her and where she was in her life. Carol Burnett showed up for the final four episodes and she was amazing. She was not doing comedy at all. The story with her and her grandson was pretty perfect. It showed how Saul cannot leave his old life behind. He was still miserable and took advantage of people. Even when he tried to do good, when he tried to be better, he would be pulled back in by the allure of money. Saul Goodman was, and always will be a scumbag. Yet I could not help myself rooting for him. I wanted him to be with Kim. I hoped he was going to find a way out of his troubles. I thought he may even become a lawyer again. I figured he could find his way back in the game.

In the long run I felt that the ending was perfect. It was the best way to wrap up this show. They gave everyone the ending that I felt was deserved. We are talking about people who were, or did, criminal things. Even the minor characters, Saul's assistant, some people he helped out as Saul, the film students who helped him mess with people, they all did criminal things and felt the consequences. Again, even when I wanted to feel bad for them, I would remember all the stuff they did to get money and the bad feelings went away. In the end Saul Goodman and Jimmy McGill got what was coming. He literally got his comeuppance. We knew it was coming and we knew it was going to be brutal. But that was the only fitting end to this show.

"Better Call Saul" is now in the pantheon of all time great shows. It nailed the story, the writing was impeccable and the directing was top notch. Vince Gilligan knows what he is doing, especially with these characters. I love this show and will probably visit it again at some point. "Better Call Saul" was awesome.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Watches "Thor: Love and Thunder"

For date night this week my wife and I watched "Thor: Love and Thunder". We both wanted to see the movie. We liked "Ragnarok" a lot, and with the whole crew back we figured this one would be great too. While not great, I thought this movie was okay. It could have been better, but there are little critiques I have here and there.

What made "Ragnarok" so great was the way they used comedy and seriousness all within the superhero world. "Love and Thunder" was almost too goofy. They leaned way too far into the humor aspect. I like a good comedy, but with the whole superhero thing, you have to juggle those two things. We are talking about a world in which superheroes and villains exist. There are bound to be some serious things going on. There was another break in the whole vibe of the movie every time Christian Bale was on screen. He played the villain. He was Gorr the God Butcher, and he did a pretty good job. But whenever he was on screen he was overacting. He was too serious. Even when he was trying to be funny/menacing at the same time it came off as too serious. It was creepy. He was creepy. And I assume that is what they wanted in this role. But whenever Bale wasn't on screen, or when they just focused on Thor, it was joke after joke. There was too much. Even when they tried to make him more serious it was done in a light tone. And I appreciate Chris Hemsworth and his acting ability and the fact that he can be funny. But in this movie it was just too much.

The movie also moved kind of slowly. It was definitely slower than most MCU movies, especially after the more recent MCU movies. It kind of took awhile for it to get to the point. And it felt like it took awhile. Scenes went on for a little too long. It was too much at times. The stuff with Russell Crowe was a bit over the top. So was some of the Christian Bale stuff as well. They meandered a bit longer than they did in "Ragnarok". They went away from what made "Ragnarok" so great.

Even with these critiques, this movie still worked. It was more fun than some of the other MCU stuff. I liked that there wasn't all this backstory. I appreciated that there weren't a ton of new superheroes or villains I needed to learn about. I liked that they kept the cameos to an extreme minimum. I appreciated that scenes with all the gods featured gods from Greek mythology. These are gods we all know or have heard of before. Hemsworth was solid. Tessa Thompson rules. She is such a badass. Taika Waititi does great as Korg. Natalie Portman's return was great and much deserved. Bale was chewing the scenery, but he was still fun and creepy. I liked the look of New Asgaard. The music, even with it being Guns N Roses, was fitting.

All in all, "Love and Thunder" was uneven. There were parts I liked and parts I didn't like so much. I'm glad I watched it at home and not at the theater. I had fun but it felt slow. I do not get the mass criticism from some MCU fans, but they are an unreasonable bunch. "Love and Thunder" is a fine movie. Watch it at home if you have Disney +. That is the best way to consume the movie.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Watches “What We Do In The Shadows” Season Four

"What We Do in the Shadows" wrapped up their fourth season this week. This show is becoming one of the better shows on TV. They are really taking big swings and they are connecting. This show is yet another reason why FX has the best shows going right now. They give the creators carte blanche and let them do their thing. They do not seem to get overly involved and that works in their favor. They allow the creators to create. That is how it should be. The less notes the better the show can be. That is precisely what is happening with "WWDITS".

This show works on every single level. The actors are great. The people behind the scenes are great. The show just works. This past season they went a little more with the drama. I did not know how it would work. I would read some headlines after the show aired, before I watched the DVR version we had, and they would say it was another good episode that was light on jokes. I would be a bit apprehensive at first, but when I watched it it was always great. It always worked in the flow of the show. They still did some big broad comedy stuff, but for the most part, this season was more about building each character and giving them a bit of a dramatic arc.

Nadja got to start her nightclub and she was the funniest on the show this season. But not everything goes her way and she makes a good amount of mistakes that end up being not so great. Nandor had a genie and a wife and seemed like it was all good. But he did too much. He made too many things happen. He couldn;t decide what he wanted, and it just ended up with him being very bored. Guillermo revealed a ton this season. He got to really flesh out his character. But he had some missteps on the way. He lost some stuff. He had some family issues and personal issues he had to deal with. The finale also ended on him with a big time cliffhanger. I cannot wait to see how they handle all of that in season five.

The real drama was all between Laszlo and Colin Robinson. These two had a great end to season 3. Season 4 only built on that. They really went deep into their relationship. It really became a father son type deal with the two of them. Matthew Berry was a revelation this season. I have always liked him as a comedian, but he got to show real depth in the finale. I felt for him. He also wore some crazy outfits and spoke so funny and awkward all season. The way he said New York City in one of the final episodes was simply the best. The AV Club wrote an entire article on it in fact. Colin Robinson was awesome. He got to do some cool CGI acting. Seeing him go from a baby back to himself was remarkable. The VFX crew did a masterful job creating and bringing this character to life. I loved watching the growth all season long. But it was pretty upsetting in the end. I am not spoiling anything either. I was watching the finale with my wife and we both remarked on how upsetting it was in the end, but in a good way.

I adore this show. It continues to get better and better. I love how the show continues to change because it all works. They have great people working on this, and if they continue on the arc they are on right now, "WWDITS" could go down as an all time great. I do truly believe this. I am not being hyperbolic. "WWDITS" rules. Everyone should be watching this show. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Ty Watches "Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn't Exist"

I recently finished the Netflix two part documentary on Manti Teo called "The Girlfriend who Didn't Exist". It was fascinating.

I remember living through all of this. I am an avid college football fan as you all know. This story was everywhere in 2012. but I knew of Teo before all of this. He was a major recruit. Every big team wanted him. When it was down to USC and Notre Dame I just assumed he'd pick USC. Hell, I thought he would go to BYU, since he is Mormon, before he'd go to Notre Dame. But in the end, he picked the Fighting Irish. I was stunned and so were many other people. But he kept getting better and better every year. He could have left after his junior year and been a high first round draft pick. But he came back. Then he played very well. Then Notre Dame kept winning games. Then his grandma died. Then, on the same day, so did his online girlfriend. It was all a lot. But he kept playing and playing well, and his team was winning.

Right before the Heisman ceremony, he was a finalist, the whole online girlfriend thing exploded. According to the doc, Teo knew about the news before the Heisman trophy was given out. I did not know this. This was all news to me. But after the ceremony, before the BCS title game, the story broke everywhere. Deadspin was the first to report it and then everyone jumped on board. Teo was giving interviews to Katie Couric with his folks. The person that catfished Teo was going on Dr Phil's show to show him how he did it all. Then it was on every news report everywhere. This was not just sports broadcasts, it was national news. CNN, MSNBC, local news stations, I mean it was EVERYWHERE.

This is where the doc became truly fascinating to me. All the stuff beforehand, the football and the girlfriend and his family life, it was all out in the open. But after the fact, after he found out he was being catfished, that was when it became truly nuts. Teo started to suffer from panic attacks and true anxiety. He said that football used to be his outlet, that he could let it all go when he walked out there. But after all the shit hit the fan he was not the same. He tried too hard. He had to prove he wasn't just the guy that got catfished. He wanted to show he could still be an elite level linebacker. But he was too in his head. He was thinking too much. He wasn't just playing the game. It became a problem. And seeing him interviewed, hearing him talk about that time in his life, I felt for him. That had to be absolutely brutal for him to live through. I found myself thinking, as gross as it may sound, about how much money he lost by falling to the second round. He had to reprove how good he was. He had to start all over again. That is not fair. Teo was one of the best defensive college football players to ever step on the field. He had all the tools coaches craved. He was a great locker room guy. His teammates and coaches all like him. There was hardly anything to dislike about Teo. I am a lifelong Michigan fan, and I even found myself rooting for Teo. Let me make this clear, I rooted for Teo, not Notre Dame. And to see the lady who catfished him, she was a man at the time, but she is now transgender, to show a little remorse, but not much, kind of made me flinch a bit. This person was taking advantage of someone who was listening and helping them out with their issues. She could have stopped at any time, but she kept going. I get that she was confused at the time and trying to find out who she really is, but she took this way, way too far. I get that Teo forgave her and he has moved on and is living as normal a life as he can. But she could have been a bit more remorseful or showed some kind of regret. I don't know, I expected more I guess.

All of that being said, this two part doc was incredible. Again, I remember this whole thing so vividly, but this doc gave me so much more info, and new info at that. I cannot recommend it enough. It is a fascinating watch, and not just for sports fans. There are tons of real life stories in this and it is great. Check it out.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Now I Really Want to See "Don't Worry Darling"

A while back I watched the preview for Olivia Wilde's new movie "Don't Worry Darling". I saw a ton of stuff online about how horny it was. It was an okay enough preview. It wasn't crazy or anything, but the premise of the movie caught my attention. I was intrigued. It felt and looked like an updated "Stepford Wives" type of movie.

Then I saw more previews and got even more interested in this movie. I still want to see it. It helps that I loved "Booksmart", I like the actors in this, I like the dystopian nature of the previews and it seems highly intriguing. Early reviews are out now and they are kind of tepid. That doesn't matter to me, if I want to see this movie I will, I just may not go watch it in a theater. I will wait for it to be on VOD.

This past month or so the intrigue involved with the making of this movie and now all the stuff at the Venice Film Festival has definitely ratcheted up my interest. For those that may not know, there have been a plethora of stories and "scandals" that have come out during the lead up to the movie's release. The first notice I got was the whole Shia Labeouf thing. This is an actor I used to like, but now I am over it. He is too much. He is an asshole. He is pretentious. He is out of his mind. He is a hurtful person. So when I saw that Wilde said she fired him from the movie to protect Florence Pugh it made sense. He is a volatile person. But then he came back and said he quit. Then there was this back and forth between him and Wilde all done over social media. It was nuts. I lean more towards Wilde's side in this whole story, but I will never truly know what happened. This is a classic he said she said scenario, but with the he being an insane person.

Next some stuff came out about Pugh and Wilde. I guess they did not really get along, that Pugh was blowing off press meetings, that Wilde had some minor complaints. It was all very minimal stuff, but it still made the entertainment news. It was enough of a story to push it all ahead of the upcoming release of the movie.

I also saw, right after the Pugh thing, that Wilde said she wanted the previews to be even hornier. I guess she wanted to show more of the sex scene stuff that is in the movie. This is so pointless, but with the Labeouf and Pugh stuff, then the Pugh and Wilde stuff, this story was pushed to the front of most websites.

And now we have the whole Venice Film Festival stuff. This has been off the charts wild. Every story that is coming from the film fest just gets nuttier and nuttier. I guess Pugh didn't want to do press with some of the cast, so she did it on her own. She also wore a dress, this is according to Buzzfeed so take it as you will, to criticize some of the people who worked on the movie. Then we have all this Chris Pine stuff. He was seen zoning out during interviews. He has been walking around with a disposable camera and taking massive amounts of pictures that need to be developed. His choice of clothes is nuts. There was a whole story about if Harry Styles spit on him or not at a press thing, and if it was intentional or not. And then you got the tepid response at the festival and the early reviews are not great. The only person in this movie that I am seeing normal stuff from is Nick Kroll. And I am a fan of his and think he is absolutely hilarious.

All of this is to say that I still want to see this movie. I am still into the whole story and I want to know how the movie unfolds. But all this extra stuff that has been going on is making me question everything. I do not know who is wrong and who is right. I know who I side with, but that means nothing. I have been questioning if all of this drama is just being made up to get people talking about the movie again. Maybe they are all involved and they were told by managers and publicists to really blow it all out of proportion. That is a bit conspiracy theory of me, but anything is possible, right? Either way I will see this movie someday. I will probably not see it in theaters, but who knows. But what I do know is, when I eventually see it, I will think back to this past month and how nuts all the surrounding noise was at the time, because it has been pretty wild.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

The Pac 12 is Once Again Overrated

Within two weeks of college football being on I already have to eat crow. I expect this to happen from time to time, but never this early on. I mean, most teams have only played one game. But after the first full weekend of college football, and isn't it wonderful that it is back, I am already on the chopping block. It came quicker than I expected.

Why the crow for dinner? The Pac 12 is exactly who we all thought they were. I had faith in the conference this year. I thought they were going to be better. I thought they had a shot to get a team in the playoffs. I was almost certain that team was going to be either Utah or Oregon. I was very, very wrong. USC looked good. Stanford cruised. Arizona got a big win. Arizona State overcame some early struggles. The rest of the conference fared pretty well. But the two top dogs, the two preseason favorites, the two highest ranked teams in the Pac 12 both got beat.

Utah had a tougher game. It was on the road in Gainesville. I understand Florida is not the powerhouse they once were. But they have a new coach. I expect big things soon from Billy Napier. Gainesville is always a tough spot to play. Utah had a big time zone change. They had to wait all day to play. But still, they were the preseason number 7 team. They were coming off a Rose Bowl game they had every shot to win. They had a returning QB. They have a good run game and a solid defense. But they shot themselves in the foot. They let Anthony Richardson, who looks like a budding star, do whatever he wanted. They could not stop Florida in the fourth quarter. They never really got the run game going. And in the end, with a chance to win the game, they threw a pick. It was a cluster of bad things. Utah was under prepared, got outcoached and outplayed and got beat because of it. They pretty much have to run the table from here on out, winning big in every game, and they still might be on the outside looking in come playoff conversation time. Utah blew a golden opportunity.

Utah’s loss wasn't as bad as Oregon. Boy oh boy did they get absolutely annihilated. This game was never, not for one second, in doubt. Georgia is very, very good. I get that. I did not expect Oregon to win this game. Georgia is loaded on both sides of the ball still, even with all the talent from last season's title team in the NFL. But Oregon laid a total egg. They were lifeless. They showed no fight. They got down early and never fought back. They looked like they wanted to be anywhere else then on that football field. Their new head coach looked severely overmatched. The team was just listless. They looked like a freshman team playing a Varsity team. A bad freshman team at that. I mean, the final score was 49-3. I watched this same Georgia team dismantle Michigan in the playoff last season, but at least Michigan showed a little heart. Oregon was not only outmatched, they had nothing good come from this game. This is the type of blowout that can derail a season. Again, I expected Georgia to win, win comfortably at that, but for Oregon to make it feel a little closer. I thought Oregon could score some points and this game would catapult them to go on a long winning streak. I figured it would have them more than ready for Pac 12 play. I put them in the playoff. Now there is almost no shot they get in. You cannot take a beating like that and expect the committee to take you seriously. This was not a good look for the Pac 12, but it was even worse for Oregon. They are the Gonzaga of college football now. They are the paper champions. They always look good, but when they have to play a real team, they almost never show up. This was rough. I mean, I do not know how they recover from this. It is embarrassing. I have always kind of liked Oregon, they may be the only team besides Michigan I do not actively root against, and this was just a real tough watch.

We will see what the rest of the season has for us, but this is not a very good start for a conference that a lot of people are already writing off. Maybe USC or UCLA will go on a roll and save the conference. Right now though, Utah and Oregon have made it harder than it should be.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

SeedSing Classic: It is Time to Repeal and Replace Capitalism

Every Labor Day we revisit the failure of capitalism. Now more than ever the destructive narrative of capitalism is on display with the criminal greed being seen in our corporations and government. 

The post originally appeared on September 7th, 2015.

What do we really celebrate on Labor Day? History says that the day started as a reaction to the Haymarket Massacre in 1886. The deaths in Chicago that day brought to light the struggles of workers nationwide. Demonstrators at Haymarket Square that day were rallying for an eight hour work day. When we go back and look at how the heads of capitalism treated their workers, who were US citizens, it is frightening. The labor movement needed to strike, rally, and demonstrate just so the capital owners would treat the workers like real humans. We celebrate Labor Day because workers needed to demand, and risk their safety, for a humanity that the capital owners were not willing to provide.

Capitalism is anti humanity and it is not allowing us to socially evolve, it is time for a new economic system. The people at the very top of our capitalistic society are large carnivores that get rewarded for anything that they can consume. There is no humanity to the capital owners. We celebrate record stock markets, and forget we have such a small volume of people participating in the market. We complain about welfare queens, without accepting that some of our richest CEOs get their salaries enhanced by government subsidies. The devourers at the top of the economic food chain have made the people below fearful and reverent at the same time. Capitalism is not allowing us to grow as humans, it is keeping us in cages like the animals that the capital owners need to control.

The way capitalism is sold to the general public is through use of code words like freedom and opportunity. In the world of today there is very little opportunity or freedom for the people not at the top of the capitalism food chain. The use of freedom and opportunity have their roots in trying to keep people non-empowered. If you want to go out and start your own business, you do have that freedom. If you have a great idea that can change the world, you have the opportunity to pursue that dream. Our modern capitalistic system does throw up every hurdle imaginable so the current capital owners have a say over your success. The system allows for the commoditization of people who can steal and exploit other people's work. The defenders of capitalism use opportunity and freedom as defenses for these patent trolls. Capitalism does not create ideas, it creates ways to steal great ideas and give them to the carnivores at the top.

The idea of commoditization has reached a truly dangerous level in our society. We have used capitalism to justify putting a price on the our most important human needs. Healthcare is one of our largest, and wealthiest, industries. We all accept that doctors should be well paid because of their skill and necessity. Our ability to get healthcare, through insurance, is directly related to our income. That is insane. Medical care is a necessity for everyone in the world, why should it be a commodity? Why do we not question this? Most doctors are not builders and creators, they are administrators. When you go to the doctor, it is for maintenance or to discuss something out side of the norm. Your income level rarely dictates the maintenance you require. Your income level can directly relate to the need for a doctor when there is something outside of norm. Lower income people have more severe, treatable, medical issues because of how capitalism financially elevates doctors. Basic human needs like healthcare are not a commodity. Capitalism has set a value to our lives, that is anti-humanity.

The ability to communicate has been the greatest tool for social evolution. The printing press created a new world filled with scientific and social advances. The internet is just getting its legs, and changing the entire world for the better. Many of the innovations related to communication were not done in pursuit of economic riches. The internet was created by the government, and nurtured by the social system, to become the tool we use today. The engineers of the world create things that not only maintain society, but allow it to grow. The Wright Brothers looked to the government for support before they looked to the capital owners. Roads, rails, and bridges are designed and built by engineers with government support, not private business support. Why is it that the government has allowed business to commoditize basic needs like communication? The rise of the telecom deregulation was another sacrifice at the idol of capitalism. We have been told that private business can handle our communication better than the government funded engineers who built the network. Our reward is one of the worst communication networks in the developed world. The telecom companies get their money, the CEOs get their large paydays, and the citizens get a subpar product thanks to the tenets of capitalism. The telecom companies do not have any concern for our ability to communicate, their concern is only to gain money. Our government, and our cultural programming, have allowed for basic communication to be another commodity to be bought and sold. Due to capitalism the more wealth you have, the better communication available.

Capitalism is a wall that stops innovation. The ability to create a commodity out of basic social needs is a large problem. Your health is not something that should be paid for. Your voice and ideas are not things that should be granted by a company with no creators. Capitalism exists to give freedom and opportunity to those already established, and make sure the non established have very nearly no options to compete. We deserve the right pursue our dreams, and not be hampered by our inability to pay for health or communication. Everyone deserves freedom and opportunity.

Capitalism is one of the most destructive forces in history. We need to have a discussion on how to replace this carnivorous ideology with one that rewards innovation and creates an evolving society. In the future we will continue to discuss the pitfalls of capitalism, and start to formulate an ideology that will bring about a brighter future. We encourage your dissent and contribution. Your ideas are not a commodity. Come share them with us.

Happy Labor day. Enjoy this day of rest and remember that protesters died for the right to have a reasonable work schedule. Let us use this Labor Day to start a new movement. The old capitalistic ways need to be repealed, the replacement will produce true opportunity. We can find this new way forward together. The only thing we will lose are the cages the capitalists keep society in.

RD Kulik

RD is the creator and Head Editor for SeedSing. 

Ty Watches "Trainwreck: Woodstock '99"

Recently I watched the three part documentary series on Netflix about Woodstock 99. I have watched other stuff on this very same topic, but this felt a bit more in depth. This was more involved. They had interviews with festival goers, security workers, background workers and the two main producers. I was fascinated by everything I watched.

The three episodes were built around each day of the festival. And it was awesome. I very much enjoyed hearing about this horrific time from the perspective of the people involved. I liked the interviews with the artists, but it was the people involved in the background and the fans that made this a fascinating watch. It was harrowing to listen to them talk about those three fateful days in 1999.

As I watched, and got more and more into the doc, I started to wonder about how I would have reacted. I think this is why this worked so much for me. I am endlessly fascinated by the mentality that goes into these people deciding when and why to go over the edge. What is the limit that someone will go past? When is enough enough? When do you decide to loot and riot and burn stuff down? All of this has had me thinking since I finished the show. These people were clearly taken advantage of by the people who ran the festival. They price gouged, they had them in an open air force base in the dead of summer, they didn't give them adequate cleaning facilities, it was all bad. The festival goers deserved better. But the festival goers also deserve a good amount of the blame as well. They got angry and acted on their most animal of impulses. They took advantage of women. They did awful things to unsuspecting people. They drank until they couldn't see or think straight. They did copious amounts of drugs. They did the actual tearing apart of the festival grounds. They started the fires. They lost it and took it out on everyone else. They were, mostly, rich, privileged white kids who were not getting their way so they acted on it. And they took it way, way too far.

There is blame to be thrown everywhere. But back to my train of thought from before. What would I have done had I been at Woodstock 99. I most likely would not have gone because the acts were not my cup of tea. I like Rage Against the Machine. I enjoy the idea of a band like Bush. I enjoy some Red Hot Chili Peppers songs. But the rest of the bill was rough. Bands like Limp Bizkit, Kid Rock, Korn, that is not my cup of tea. But let's just say I went. I like to imagine that, after day one, I would have left. In the best of conditions I usually like to leave a show early to beat traffic. From what I watched and heard, this would have been an utter nightmare for me being at Woodstock 99. I have OCD and like to stay clean. I have sanitizer always at the ready and enjoy cleaning and washing things. That was not viable at Woodstock 99. It was also brutally hot. I love being outside, but the air condition is so, so, so much better. I mean, I can stand the heat for a run or going for a walk or hike. But if I were in a crowd of 250,000 people in that heat, no thank you. I am also straight edge. I do not drink or do drugs. I have never, and at this point, most likely will never do those things. I also get pretty aggravated when I'm surrounded by a big group of stoned or drunk people. That is another mark in the cons column for me. I also do not enjoy being in large crowds for longer than an hour or two. A football game is fun, or even one concert. But three days worth of shows with that many people would have been a disaster. And finally we have the whole idea of camping. I am not a camper. I do not like it at all. I am a city kid through and through. I love the luxuries of not having to camp. The whole idea of camping would have been a big stopping point for me. So, in looking back at all this and thinking about how I would have reacted, I do not think I would have even gone. I think I would have skipped the whole thing. I would not have been involved in any of the horrific events that took place at Woodstock 99. It would have been terrible.

I do recommend watching this three part series. It was very informative and very interesting.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

I Love This Donovan Mitchell Trade

Donovan Mitchell was finally traded. And it wasn't to the Knicks or Lakers or the Warriors. He is going to the Cavs.

This is shocking to me. I love it, but it is wild. Donovan Mitchell got what he wanted, the Cavs got instantly better and the Jazz got a young guy trying to repair his game and a bunch of more picks. Now Utah just has to find a trade partner for Mike Conley and they can go into full rebuild mode. But let's look at this trade primarily.

I love, love, love this deal for the Cavs. I was, and still am, a Collin Sexton fan. But his time in Cleveland was over the moment Darius Garland became an all star last season. The backcourt was going to be Garland's from here on out. They are going to build the backcourt around him. Adding Donovan Mitchell makes them an immediate threat. He and Garland can both handle the ball, score at will, find scoring lanes where there may not be any and are a matchup nightmare for other teams. This instantly props the Cavs as a playoff contender. Hell, I'd say you could write it in pen. They will be a playoff team and could be a top four seed. This puts them on par with Miami, Toronto, Chicago and Atlanta, all playoff teams last season. I'd only put the Bucks, 76ers and Celtics ahead of them now with the addition of Mitchell. What makes it even better is they got to keep their core guys. I mentioned Garland, but they also kept Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. They still have Cedi Osman and Caris Levert coming off the bench. They only had to give up Sexton and three unprotected picks, which will most likely be later first round picks since the Cavs should be good for awhile now.

This is the best the Cavs have looked since LeBron James was there. I love that the Cavs are going for it and trying to be relevant again. They have this great group of young guys, a great frontcourt and, now, one of the best backcourts in the East, hell, maybe even the NBA. This is an absolute homerun.

As for the Jazz, they traded a disgruntled all star, got more picks and got a reclamation project in Sexton. Sexton will get all the shots and touches he could ever want. He should, and most likely will, be their number one guy. He will be the focal point of the offense. He will get every single chance to redeem himself and show everyone why he was such a prize draft pick. I love that for him. But the Jazz also got more picks, which I think is what they wanted even more. With these three unprotected picks, the Jazz now have thirteen picks through 2029. That is a goldmine of picks that only the Thunder can match right now. The Jazz want to start over and build through the draft. They get to do just that. And I wonder how many picks they can get for Conley at some point. After trading Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, I cannot imagine a world where they keep Conley around. That would be a nightmare for him, and a mistake by the Jazz. They can definitely get more picks and maybe another young player.

This trade is a win-win for both squads. Both teams got what they wanted. And if I were Mitchell I would be absolutely stoked to go play for this up and coming Cavs team. They are going to be one fun team to watch next season. I love this so very much and it makes me even more excited to watch the NBA this year. What a deal. Wow.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.